Bengaluru: The Election Commission of India has rejected media reports claiming that Bharat Ratna awardee and eminent scientist Professor CNR Rao was served a notice over a 'Self-Name Mismatch' during Karnataka's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The clarification comes after reports suggested that Rao's name had been flagged because of a spelling discrepancy between the 2002 electoral roll and the current voter list.

The reports said his earlier entry carried the name 'Prof. C.N.R. Rao', while the current roll listed him as 'Proff. C.N.R. Rao', with an additional 'f'.

The ECI, however, said the reports were 'factually incorrect'. According to its clarification, Rao's name does not appear in the 2002 electoral roll in the manner cited in the reports.

His entry in the 2002 roll is recorded as 'Rama S/O H. Nagesh', while his name in the current electoral roll appears as 'Proff. C.N.R. Rao S/O Nagesh Rav. H.'

The poll panel further clarified that no notice has been served to Rao or his family in connection with the alleged mismatch.

The controversy had drawn considerable attention given Rao's stature and his decades-long contribution to India's scientific establishment.

Born in Bengaluru, the 92-year-old scientist is one of the country's most prominent figures in the field of chemistry and materials science.

Rao was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, in 2014. He became the third scientist to receive the prestigious award.

The scientist has also played a significant role in shaping Bengaluru's scientific ecosystem.

He served as the director of the Indian Institute of Science and was instrumental in establishing the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research.

The ECI's clarification effectively puts to rest reports that Rao had been asked to establish his identity before election officials over a discrepancy involving an extra letter in his name.

The episode comes as Karnataka undertakes the SIR exercise to verify and update electoral roll details, a process that has generated scrutiny over discrepancies in voter records.